The one thing I really want changed from the D800 to it's successor is the ISO control button needs to be moved from the "rewind knob" to near the shutter release. Better SNR at ultra-high ISo settings would be nice too.

Thanks, it's a thought, but unfortunately the NEX is the least inspiring camera I've ever used.

I think the inspiration comes from the synergy of you with the scene. You don't need the camera for that.It wont impress clients looking for some expensive box. Just stick a Leica label on it. Suddenly the same output will be 5X more valuable.

I think the inspiration comes from the synergy of you with the scene. You don't need the camera for that.It wont impress clients looking for some expensive box. Just stick a Leica label on it. Suddenly the same output will be 5X more valuable.

I use my Zeiss 100/2 ZF.2 Makro Planar on my D800E for work related product shots and it's a superb combination.

I don't rate the Nikon 35 f/2 lens at all. A much better lens for the D800 is the manual focus Nikkor 28 f/2.8 AI-S lens. It's razor sharp, particularly up close, is beautifully made and excellent for some product shots as it focuses down to an incredible 20 cm (7") and has very little distortion.

Tomorrow I'm taking delivery of a Sigma 35 f/1.4 and hope that it lives up to all the hype.

As TMark with Hassy lenses via adapter, do the same with M645 glass (80/1.9 C & N, 120/4, 150/2.8A, the incredible 200/2.8 APO) and Fotodiox Pro adapter on 800E and D3S with excellent results -- and a very different drawing style vs Nikon, Zeiss, etc. Have also used Hassy 110/2 FE with Canon a couple of years ago - again very nice results.

AF and auto-aperture manual focus glass are a priority for the business, but when clean copy & budget stars align, I need to re-acquire the 80/1.9 (and maybe the 200 APO), and eventually try some more Hassy (and Pentax) glass, but the 120/4 and 150/2.8A are in the "never shall be sold" category.

I received the new sigma 35mm F1.4 lens Nikon mount a week or so ago and after some tests against my Nikon 35mm F1.4G I sent it back to the NZ distributor. Very soft in the corners at F5.6 and F8.0.

I would be interested in you thoughts when you have tested your version.

Cheers

Simon

Hello Simon,

I received the Sigma 35mm F1.4 (Art) lens today. Tested it this afternoon on my RRS TVC-34L tripod and BH-55 ballhead, which is very stable. Well, I was stunned at how sharp this lens is especially at F5.6 and F8. It equals my Nikon 200 f/2 VR II for straight out sharpness but not for colour. After your experience with the copy you had, I was particularly interested in the corners at F5.6 and F8.0. No problem with mine. Maybe, you should try another one as you had a decentred lens by the sounds of it.

One thing about the 28 AIS: it is a stunning, complex design. I have two copies. My first was knocked around a bit and started blowing highlights and showing CA. I received a quote to have it repaired and found that buying another copy would be cheaper. The second copy had the same problem, sent them both into be repaired and they are magic lenses.

As TMark with Hassy lenses via adapter, do the same with M645 glass (80/1.9 C & N, 120/4, 150/2.8A, the incredible 200/2.8 APO) and Fotodiox Pro adapter on 800E and D3S with excellent results -- and a very different drawing style vs Nikon, Zeiss, etc. Have also used Hassy 110/2 FE with Canon a couple of years ago - again very nice results.

AF and auto-aperture manual focus glass are a priority for the business, but when clean copy & budget stars align, I need to re-acquire the 80/1.9 (and maybe the 200 APO), and eventually try some more Hassy (and Pentax) glass, but the 120/4 and 150/2.8A are in the "never shall be sold" category.

Using whatever lenses you can adapt to a Nikon or Canon is, to me, so much more interesting and flexible than the MF backs. I have an 80 1.9 and an 80 2.8. I very much liked them both of film and MF digital. I'll get the adapter ASAP.

I received the new sigma 35mm F1.4 lens Nikon mount a week or so ago and after some tests against my Nikon 35mm F1.4G I sent it back to the NZ distributor. Very soft in the corners at F5.6 and F8.0.

I would be interested in you thoughts when you have tested your version.

Cheers

Simon

I wonder if issues like this are really focus calibration issues and not optical defects? I think manually focus bracketing would be the only way to discount that problem. There was a white paper by lensrentals on the subject a while back.

Lloyd Chambers also has written on his website about lens skew he has encountered with the Sigma 35mm F1.4 lens.

I think I will wait a few months and then try a number of Sigma 35mm F1.4 lenses and compare them to my Nikon 35mm F1.4G lens to see if there is a good version out there.

Enjoy your new lens.

Cheers

Simon

As I read Mr Chambers' post, his current theory is that the lens flanges on his two D800s are slewed as he observed the defect not only with the Sigma 35 f/2.8 but also the new Zeiss 125 f/2 Apo and a couple of other lenses. The defect likely resides in the camera, not the lenses.

Another vote for the Sigma 35/1.4 here. I am generally not a fan of third party lenses (other than Carl Zeiss) but this one is a winner. I spent *considerable* time (somewhere north of 6 different testing sessions across many weeks) testing it against my other wide angles with my D800E (Zeiss 21, Nikon 24/1.4G, Nikon 28/1.8G, Nikon 35/1.4G and my 24-70/2.8G zoom) and it easily won the competition against the 35/1.4G in every aspect of performance EXCEPT flare resistance, where the Nikon was markedly superior, and if one were to get subjective, I thought the Nikon bokeh was a bit better. This included testing at every possible distance range I would ever see myself using the lens in, from studio work through infinity/landscape, all controlled, proper testing on a heavy tripod rig, remote release, focus bracketing via live view and so forth. Short answer: I just sold the Nikon 35/1.4G; in particular the distant corners/edges for landscape type targets were rendered better with the Sigma, and even in studio work, the sharpness advantage of the Sigma is noticeable. Only my Zeiss 21 is noticeably any better in the center, which is saying something. I even tested the Sigma against the Zeiss 35/2 and Zeiss 28/2 and preferred the Sigma.

So, to make a long story short, I hope you try another one; this is a truly state of the art lens if you find a good sample.

I just got the Sigma 35 1.4 from B&H. Yesterday I went to a local airport where they have an old B17 bomber. Combined with my Nikon D800 I got excellent results. this lens is just the thing for crawling into a dark space where a tripod would not fit. It very sharp and has great colors, with a minimum of distortion. it is price at half what you would pay for a Zeiss, which is what I use for landscapes.

Thanks for your critique on the Sigma F1.4 lens. I will definitely give it another go and I will test in on both of my Nikon D800s just to be sure.

Cheers

Simon

I got mine today and made a quick test against Nikon 35mm F:1.4. Sigma is clearly sharper both at full open and at f:8, and there is less color smearing. Camera was D800E. So it seems I was lucky to get a good specimen... Sigma is slightly wider, by the way. Nikon image was linear 95.5% of the Sigma image in size. If Nikon is 35mm, then Sigma is actually 34mm.

There is no 17mm tilt-shift lens, the 24mm PC-E lens has less shift than its Canon counterpart, and they don't quite match the Canons for image quality.

This is the only reason I'm still using Canon - their low-ISO image quality hasn't improved since the 5D2, and Nikon/Sony left them in the dust a long time ago. But I like to shift and stitch for landscapes...

I was planning to get the new Sony A58 but after consideration of the weak spot of my lenses - wides - I am about to go D600. The DxO review made me think the D600 will get most of what the lenses have to offer for $2k. I'm not paying $3k to go FF when the D600 has me really impressed with the low noise. I'm thinking Nikon 28 1.8G or Sigma 35 and the 85 1.8G

My Sig 20 1.8 EX DG on 1.5 crop is really pressed at infinity focus. There is a tearing effect on the fine detail. The lens seems fine at shorter distances. It's a fail for landscapes which is why I use the 50 macro stitched.

Since most review sites test the lenses in studio make sure you test your purchase at distance as well, you may have a rude surprise. This happened to me recently with a 180 degree pano at a national park using the Sig 20, my newest lens. Fortunately I had also done a copy with the 50 Macro or that trip would have been a bust.